كل عام وأنتم بخير

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This series aims to shed light on the people who are the underlying driving force of change in the Jordanian society: The ordinary citizens with extraordinary ideas, stories or actions.

Have you ever talked to someone that made you feel like they’ve just entered your brain and opened the windows for sun and fresh air to come in? That’s exactly how I felt after a 2-hour conversation with Lana Abu Ayyash.

A non-stop researcher and a life-long women rights enthusiast, Lana can’t remember a time when she wasn’t preoccupied with women rights and women issues. In fact, that could be one of very few constants about her mindset, because for her the mind is a constantly expanding horizon. That said, and learning about the big ideological transformation she went through, you will know that it wasn’t an overnight miraculous transformation, but rather the result of a diligent quest for the truth, where she decided to let go of all her predetermined prejudices and embark on a journey of in-depth research, as objectively and impartially as possible.

I don’t know if it was her down-to-earth nature or something else, but as Lana told me her story, she told it in a laid back manner as if it was something that happens to everyone, every day. Perhaps it’s because she sees it as the natural logical sequence of things, which made me quite humbled as I was listening intently, with an inner sense of amazement.

Growing up, Lana fell in the trap of mistaking tradition for religion. She was an intellectually rebellious teenager who refused to live by society’s rules and found herself somewhere between atheism and agnosticism. Later on she would decide to move abroad, thinking that living in the Western “modern” world would be the answer. Never one to take things at face value, she found that the status of women in those societies was a long cry from perfection and it fell short from the preconceived image she had in mind. Be that as it may, she decided to go back home, and to look for the answer there.

As she started digging through the books and doing more research on Islamic studies, she began to realize the gigantic amount of misconceptions surrounding Islam, and how Religion is used by some people to shape the society in a certain way that conforms to the image of the traditional male-dominated Arab society in their heads, marginalizing women and overlooking Religious texts and interpretations affirming the status of women in Islam and that could open new doors for understanding women rights and the issue of women empowerment in Islam.

According to Lana, extremism is a relatively modern phenomenon. Extremism didn’t exist in the days of the Prophet, peace be upon him, and many things that the Prophet used to do may now be frowned upon by many; again due to the traditional mindset and practices that have been mixed with Religious values. What added insult to injury was that some religious people believe those things, and some women believe they were put second to men by Islam and they are okay with it. At that point Lana knew she has to do something, so she made it her cause to empower Muslim women to speak up for themselves and to know their God-given rights.

As a result, Sister Power was born: a platform that’s all about Empowering Muslim Women by creating a space where their voices can be heard and their concerns made public. At first, membership was open for both genders, but then there was some sort of a male dominance to be noticed which made some reluctant to speak their minds and express themselves. Hence, membership was made exclusive to women.

As I toured through the website I was impressed by the different backgrounds of the members there. It’s like a common ground with a chance to learn, share and be understood. When I asked Lana about the impact the website has had on women, she said she’s had some women telling her the website had a direct impact on their lives, yet it’s not about changing lives overnight. It’s a continuous process of learning and expanding your horizons constantly, and being open to due change.

Of course Lana’s work isn’t confined to an online community, as she believes women who need empowerment the most are those who don’t necessarily have access to these online communities. She also believes that empowerment shouldn’t apply only to women, as in our society both men and women need to be empowered as individuals. One important point she stressed is how important it is to realize that we’re not the only ones who think in a certain way or have a certain interest. And this is one thing online communities are good for: they bring together people of common interest, and together they realize they can do something to influence change.

During our 2-hour conversation we’ve talked about many things, that I believe she should share with more and more people. Speaking about sharing ideas, Lana mentioned something quite interesting. She said that no idea you come up with and nothing meaningful you do goes to waste. Ideas are a form of energy, and energy never dies, it transforms. So never underestimate what you can do and never be discouraged to do something because you think it won’t resonate with anyone. Do it because you know it must be out there, sent forth into the universe.

Lana Abu Ayyash is one of the most impressive people I have met, and if we had more people with her passion, channeled the right way with such dedication and selflessness, I’d say it’s safe to be optimistic about a better future ahead.

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I am a Muslim and my religion urges me to think, think and then think. That’s why many versus in the Quran and many sayings by the prophet, Peace be upon him, are open for interpretation and many issues are left for people to figure out on their own.

I am a Muslim and I am aware that sometime Quranic verses are misinterpreted, and fake sayings are attributed to the Prophet, hence the many misunderstandings of Islam. I’m also aware that many Muslims do not represent Islam because they do not practice Islam the way it should be practiced.

I’m a Muslim and it bothers me when I go to a non-Muslim country and people look at me not as a human being with a certain attire choice but like a Hijab walking around with something fishy inside it. On the other hand, it restores my faith in humanity when people look at me with respect and even smile as if to say: “You’re different, and it’s cool, and I want to know more about what makes you different”

I am a Muslim and I don’t look down on people, and I don’t think that I’m better than others.

I’m a Muslim and when I say I do what I do for God that means that I do it for the advancement of the human race, to make the world a better place or to be a better person in the eye of God.

I’m a Muslim and when I say I believe in Allah that’s not a name like Zeus or Ra’, It’s an Arabic word that means the one and only God. The God worshipped by Moses, Jesus and all the prophets, peace be upon them.

I’m a Muslim and I am a human being who makes mistakes, who has her ups and downs, and I have the right to be treated as such or discriminated against because of the action of a minority that do not represent me or represent Islam.

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As soon as Ramadan arrives, you would hear people here and there complaining about how different Ramadan was back in the old days, whatever period of time they are referring to. Probably no one would argue about this, yet some of Ramadan’s old charm is still reserved in the old traditions, and renewed in other new ones.

As you go around Amman, you would notice the glistening electric Helals shining from doors and windows, sometimes with little flashing stars attached to them. This has been around for a few years, and people seem to have taken a liking to it, hanging them up several days before Ramadan begins to spread the joy and spirit of the holy month. Those Helals are now no less a hallmark of Ramadan than lanterns were and still are.

Another integral part of Ramadan’s tradition is Gatayef, which have been the main sweet treat in Ramadan for ages. Having been around for so many years, people managed to create different variations of Gatayef other than the traditional Gatayef bjibneh (white cheese) and Gtayef bjoz (with walnuts). Now we even have Gatayef with Nutella, a great combination of Oriental and Western goodies. Although restaurants seem to take the plunge in Ramadan, sweet shops on the other hand seem to be pretty busy, which makes perfect sense after a long day of low blood sugar levels, and the usual family gatherings. Not to mention bakeries, with the exclusive Ramadan bread, which I personally think is the tastiest bread ever! Maybe that’s why on the first day of Ramadan, when there didn’t seem to be traffic jams on the main streets, the are arounf Al-Sufara bakery was suffocating with traffic!

Television too represents a very important part of Ramadan, in the past and present alike. From religious programs to quiz shows and Arabic TV series that are mass produced for the purpose of being showed during Ramadan, and continue to be repeated over and over on Arabic channels throughout the year and the years to come. Some of those had been associated with Ramadan, such as “Alf lailah w lailah” (1001 nights) which was very popular many years ago. Syrian Drama has also claimed its place on TV in Ramdan with many successful series, such as Maraya that was a main show during Ramadan for several years, and hasn’t stopped until the last year or the year before.

One of the most successful experiences was “Ayyam Shamiyyeh”, which was a Syrian drama series that depicted the life of Damascus in the beginnings of the 20th century. The series was a hit, and it was followed in the later years by similar ones, many of which appealedto people but none as much as the original one. The latest one is “Bab el7ara 2”, which is the sequel of a series that was shown last Ramadan and proved to be a success. Many people follow this series eagerly, not only women or elderly people, but also kids and teenagers, especially boys who wait impatiently for fights to ensue between the good guys and the bad guys. The series seem to have a secret charm, in that it relates to the old traditional Arab we hold deep within us that is reflected in “el za3eem”, “el zgorty” or “Feryal khanom”.

Away from TV, perhaps the best the best time of the day to take a walk and relieve some stress is after Iftar, when everyone is going to Taraweeh prayer, while the streets are semi-empty and the whole atmosphere smells of blessings and tranquility. A great treat after having a good meal so late in the evening. Both for the body and soul.

Each year Ramadan comes to us carrying lots of blessings, and spreading a unique spirit of joy and serenity. Some things may have change and may change in the future, but there are certain things that are more likely than not to stay as a part of Ramadan, things that pass from generation to generation, carrying the old charm from fathers to sons, connecting them with the timeless charm and blissful spirit of a month that brings everyone together with love, abundance and purity.

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– But you know Amr Khaled has a very special and smooth way in conveying ideas

– Yeah but Tariq Swaidan is more convinciong for me

– I prefer Amr Khaled

– I don’t like Amr Khaled at all, I think Tariq Swaidan is much better

And so on. This attitude is killing us! Why should we keep comparing people to each other? Each one has his own way in calling for Islam and conveying his thoughts. And you know what’s funny? When scholars are asked about each other, they express nothing but respect to their colleagues. Still, there are exceptions.

The other day I saw something on the net that really ticked me off. There was an Imam speaking about Amr Khaled, throwing very disturbing insults on him. Regardless that I wasn’t convinced of his case, how could I possibly be convinced by someone using such bad language? Being a committed Muslim doesn’t mean shouting and raging around. Even if you believe someone is being wrong, there’s always a way to deal with it without disrespecting that person.

I believe that if someone succeeded in doing something on the ground of reality, they should be acknowledged. You can’t convince me that just because Amr Khaled uses colloquial Arabic then he is completely worthless. Look at all he people impressed by his lessons over the years. He paved the way for them to start learning more from other scholars from whom they can explore Islam from other and maybe more profound aspects.

There was also that video in which they portrayed Amr Khaled as the ultimate ignorant liar!! That was very outrageous! Do you know what they used as an example? That he is against female circumcision and thinks it’s not an Islamic tradition, which I believe to be true; for I’ve done some search on that and found that there’s no such thing in Islam that calls for this practice. Yet, those people decided to attack him and show him as an ignorant person, instead of using that beautiful endowment called reason.

If we just could stop lurking in the shadows for each other, stop hunting for mistakes, stop deeming others ignorant or misguided just because they have different opinion from ours and seek to understand, not necessarily agree, but understand… If only we could stop focusing on our differences and starting seeing the bigger picture, the clear undivided one, as a whole, a nation, not a collage of scattered denominations, if we just try to understand what Prophet Muhammad –peace be upon him- meant when he said: اختلاف أمتي رحمة… If we could only do that, and focus, maybe we will snap out of our “status quo”.

Islam is the ultimate blessing, not only a religion but a way of life. A way of living with others, a way of accepting others and accepting that we could be wrong sometimes. Let’s not let our personal ego give a distorted picture of what Islam really is, we had more that enough of that, and it’s time we changed it. It’s time we got things straight again.

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There’s been a big fuss about raising vegetable prices in Jordan, it’s getting crazy… Anyways, my mother was talking about that man on TV who said: “I’m an engineer, and I can no longer afford gallayet bandora” (a popular meal prepared with tomatoes). Well, don’t panic you engineers out there, I’m pretty much sure that man meant: “I’m an engineer, I make a lot of money, still I can’t afford gallayet bandora anymore” hmm, plausible!

Seriously, not tomato! You know it’s the one thing that can be eaten with everything… it’s legendary! I once heard that during some civil war, or one of those many crappy wars that we lost count of, they used to destinguish Palestinians by holding a piece of tomato and asking them what it was. If you say “banadoora” you’re lebanese/syrian/whatever, if you say “bandora” you’re dead! I wonder, if they were encountered by a morrocan guy, what will they make out of “mateeshah”

So, we can talk about the history of tomato-es till the cows get home, so let’s get sort of scientific… I did soem search on the health benefits of tomatoes, and here’s some of what I found:

Tomatoes are good for the eyes. Lycopene, the most abundant carotenoid in the blood serum, was found to be the key antioxidant that guards against ARMD ( Age-Related Macular Degeneration), a condition that may cause blindness.

Tomatoes are high in Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Calcium and Potassium

Eating tomatoes, ketchup, tomato sauce and tomato paste-topped pizza more than two times a week can reduce the risk of prostate cancer by 21 to 43 percent according to Dr. Edward Giovannucci of the Harvard University School of Public Health.

“The only nutrient that turned out to have significant preventative value (against prostate cancer) was lycopene,” writes Dr. Giovannucci who also found that lycopene was most efficiently absorbed into the body when accompanied by dietary fats (limpids).

“Cooking tomatoes in oil encourages intestinal absorption and results in a two-to-threefold rise in plasma lycopene concentrations,” said Dr. Giovannucci. “Tomato sauce is one of the best lycopene sources.”

Men who eat two or more servings of tomato products average a 35 percent reduction in prostate cancer risk.

Tomato products are beneficial in aggressive cancers that have also spread to other parts of the body.

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Fo r all I know, it’s not permissible nor it is possible to translate Qur’anic verses literally. While it is possible to interpret the Holy Qur’an and give translation for it’s meanings. Inother words, you can’t translate Qur’an, you can only translate Its meanings. Obviously, this is because translating the Qor’an itself could alter its meaning, and could never render Its language properly.

Now, if you wnat to interpret he Holy Qur’an and give a translation for its meanings, I know that this can’t be done with one transaltor alone. As far as I know, you need, at least, 3 persons: A transaltor whose mother tongue is Arabic and has an excellent command of the target language, another translator whose mother language is the target language and is has an excellent command of Arabic and a Muslim scholar especialized in the interpretation of Qur’anic meanigns and in the Islamic tradition….

To make sure of this before posting, I searched the subject on the web and found this:

On this Web site, there are three translations of the Qur’an. Note that any translation of the Qur’an immediately ceases to be the literal word of Allah, and hence cannot be equated with the Qur’an in its original Arabic form. In fact, each of the translations on this site is actually an interpretation which has been translated

My point is, we should be very careful with the translations we find on the net, or those we try to contrive by ourselves… I would appreciate it if anyone canprovide a website that is reliable and trustworthy for this purpose. Thanks in advance.